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Microbiology News

Top headlines, latest headlines.

• Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever Virus
• Cancer Resistance in Tasmanian Devils
• Anti-Bacterial Medications to Treat TB
• Enzymatic Mix Kills TB-Causing Mycobacteria
• Microbiome of 4,000-Year-Old Teeth
• Old Immune Systems Revitalized
• Silicon Spikes Take out 96% of Virus Particles
• Emerging Powassan Virus Spread by Deer Ticks
• Could Tardigrade Proteins Slow Aging in Humans?
• Maize Genes Control Little Helpers in the Soil

Earlier Headlines

Monday, march 25, 2024.

• Novel Electrochemical Sensor Detects Dangerous Bacteria
• Breakthrough Antibiotic Shows Promise Against Obstinate Mycobacterial Infections
• Humans Pass More Viruses to Other Animals Than We Catch from Them
• Researchers Discover Evolutionary 'tipping Point' In Fungi

Friday, March 22, 2024

• Natural Recycling at the Origin of Life
• Scientists Close in on TB Blood Test Which Could Detect Millions of Silent Spreaders
• Researchers Invent Artificial Intelligence Model to Design New Superbug-Fighting Antibiotics

Thursday, March 21, 2024

• As We Age, Our Cells Are Less Likely to Express Longer Genes
• Research Finds a Direct Communication Path Between the Lungs and the Brain
• Decoding the Plant World's Complex Biochemical Communication Networks

Wednesday, March 20, 2024

• Deep Earth Electrical Grid Mystery Solved
• Bacteria Subtype Linked to Growth in Up to 50% of Human Colorectal Cancers
• Experts Warn Climate Change Will Fuel Spread of Infectious Diseases
• Fiber, Genes and the Gut Microbiome: Study Reveals Possible Triggers for Inflammatory Bowel Disease
• Craving Snacks After a Meal? It Might Be Food-Seeking Neurons, Not an Overactive Appetite

Tuesday, March 19, 2024

• A Protein Found in Human Sweat May Protect Against Lyme Disease

Monday, March 18, 2024

• Climate Change Alters the Hidden Microbial Food Web in Peatlands
• Genes Identified That Allow Bacteria to Thrive Despite Toxic Heavy Metal in Soil
• Industrial Societies Losing Healthy Gut Microbes
• New Discovery Concerning Occurrence of Antibiotic Resistance
• Rise in Global Fungal Drug-Resistant Infections
• Cacao Plants' Defense Against Toxic Cadmium Unveiled
• Newborn Piglets Serve as a Model for Studying Influenza
• Engineers Measure pH in Cell Condensates

Friday, March 15, 2024

• 'Noisy' Roundworm Brains Give Rise to Individuality
• Gut Bacteria Make Neurotransmitters to Shape the Newborn Immune System
• Even Inactive Smokers Are Densely Colonized by Microbial Communities
• Protein Fragments ID Two New 'extremophile' Microbes--and May Help Find Alien Life
• Gut Bacteria Important for Overcoming Milk Allergy

Thursday, March 14, 2024

• Infections from These Bacteria Are on the Rise: New Blood Test Cuts Diagnosis Time from Months to Hours
• New Study on Mating Behaviors Offers Clues Into the Evolution of Attraction
• Dog-Killing Flatworm Discovered in Southern California
• It's Hearty, It's Meaty, It's Mold
• Alzheimer's Drug Fermented With Help from AI and Bacteria Moves Closer to Reality
• New Bioengineered Protein Design Shows Promise in Fighting COVID-19
• New Simpler and Cost-Effective Forensics Test Helps Identify Touch DNA

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

• Sulfur and the Origin of Life
• Tryptophan in Diet, Gut Bacteria Protect Against E. Coli Infection
• Study Shows Important Role Gut Microbes Play in Airway Health in Persons With Cystic Fibrosis
• Steroid Drugs Used for HRT Can Combat E. Coli and MRSA
• Simple Trick Could Improve Accuracy of Plant Genetics Research
• Milk to the Rescue for Diabetics? Cow Produces Human Insulin in Milk
• Who Knew That Coprophagy Was So Vital for Birds' Survival?

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

• A Simple and Robust Experimental Process for Protein Engineering
• Scientists Find Weak Points on Epstein-Barr Virus
• Maternal Obesity May Promote Liver Cancer

Monday, March 11, 2024

• Researchers Uncover Protein Responsible for Cold Sensation
• Higher Bacterial Counts Detected in Single-Serving Milks, Researchers Report

Friday, March 8, 2024

• New Study Discovers How Altered Protein Folding Drives Multicellular Evolution
• Researchers Develop Artificial Building Blocks of Life
• Researchers Open New Leads in Anti-HIV Drug Development, Using a Compound Found in Nature

Thursday, March 7, 2024

• How Does a Virus Hijack Insect Sperm to Control Disease Vectors and Pests?
• The Malaria Parasite Generates Genetic Diversity Using an Evolutionary 'copy-Paste' Tactic
• What Makes a Pathogen Antibiotic-Resistant?
• First Atom-Level Structure of Packaged Viral Genome Reveals New Properties, Dynamics
• Cracking Epigenetic Inheritance: Biologists Discovered the Secrets of How Gene Traits Are Passed on

Wednesday, March 6, 2024

• Revealing a Hidden Threat: Researchers Show Viral Infections Pose Early Heart Risks
• Microbes Impact Coral Bleaching Susceptibility
• Early Life Adversity Leaves Long-Term Signatures in Baboon DNA
• Revealing the Evolutionary Origin of Genomic Imprinting
• Universal Tool for Tracking Cell-to-Cell Interactions
• Synthetic Gene Helps Explain the Mysteries of Transcription Across Species
• Decoding the Language of Epigenetic Modifications
• Deconstructing the Structural Elements of a Lesser-Known Microbe

Tuesday, March 5, 2024

• Lab-Grown Liver Organoid to Speed Up Turtle Research, Making Useful Traits Easier to Harness
• Possible 'Trojan Horse' Found for Treating Stubborn Bacterial Infections
• Microalgae With Unusual Cell Biology

Monday, March 4, 2024

• Protecting Joints from Bacteria With Mussels
• Modeling the Origins of Life: New Evidence for an 'RNA World'
• An Evolutionary Mystery 125 Million Years in the Making
• Photosynthetic Secrets Come to Light
• Advances in Forensic Science Improve Accuracy of 'time of Death' Estimates

Friday, March 1, 2024

• Researchers Create Coating Solution for Safer Food Storage
• Light Into the Darkness of Photosynthesis
• How Virus Causes Cancer: Potential Treatment

Thursday, February 29, 2024

• New Role for Bacterial Enzyme in Gut Metabolism Revealed
• Refrigerate Lettuce to Reduce Risk of E. Coli Contamination
• Microbial Viruses Act as Secret Drivers of Climate Change
• Measuring Electrical Conductivity in Microorganisms, Approaching Understanding of Microbial Ecosystems
• Scientists Develop Novel RNA Or DNA-Based Substances to Protect Plants from Viruses
• Radio Waves Can Tune Up Bacteria to Become Life-Saving Medicines
• Scientists Discover 18 New Species of Gut Microbes in Search for Origins of Antibiotic Resistance

Wednesday, February 28, 2024

• Study Reveals Accelerated Soil Priming Under Climate Warming
• New Tool Helps Decipher Gene Behavior
• In Fight Against Brain Pathogens, the Eyes Have It
• Double Trouble at Chromosome Ends
• Change in Gene Code May Explain How Human Ancestors Lost Tails

Tuesday, February 27, 2024

• New Discovery Shows How Cells Defend Themselves During Stressful Situations
• Microbial Comics: RNA as a Common Language, Presented in Extracellular Speech-Bubbles
• Low-Temperature Plasma Used to Remove E. Coli from Hydroponically Grown Crops

Monday, February 26, 2024

• 'Janitors' Of the Sea: Overharvested Sea Cucumbers Play Crucial Role in Protecting Coral
• Cutting-Edge 'protein Lawnmower' Created
• Scientists Assemble a Richer Picture of the Plight and Resilience of the Foothill Yellow-Legged Frog
• Blindness from Some Inherited Eye Diseases May Be Caused by Gut Bacteria

Sunday, February 25, 2024

• Global Warming Increases the Diversity of Active Soil Bacteria

Friday, February 23, 2024

• Altering the Circadian Clock Adapts Barley to Short Growing Seasons
• Lab-Spun Sponges Form Perfect Scaffolds for Growing Skin Cells to Heal Wounds

Thursday, February 22, 2024

• 'Dynamic Duo' Defenses in Bacteria Ward Off Viral Threats
• Compound Vital for All Life Likely Played a Role in Life's Origin
• Copies of Antibiotic Resistance Genes Greatly Elevated in Humans and Livestock
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Strange & Offbeat

• Australia On Track for Decades-Long Megadroughts
• Speed of Visual Perception Ranges Widely
• 3D Printed Replica of an Adult Human Ear
• Extremely Fast Wound Healing: New Treatment
• Micro-Lisa! Novel Nano-Scale Laser Writing
• Simple Brain-Computer Link: Gaming With Thoughts
• Clinical Reasoning: Chatbot Vs Physicians
• Understanding People Who Can't Visualize
• Illuminating Oxygen's Journey in the Brain
• DNA Study IDs Descendants of George Washington

Trending Topics

Microbiology

Viral Genetics Confirms What On-the-Ground Activists Knew Early in the Mpox Outbreak

Molecular biology could have changed the mpox epidemic—and could stop future outbreaks

Joseph Osmundson

Cannibal Cells Inspire Cancer Treatment Improvement

Giving cells an appetite for cancer could enhance treatments

Kate Graham-Shaw

Is Raw-Milk Cheese Safe to Eat?

Recent bacterial outbreaks from consuming cheese made from unpasteurized milk, or “raw milk,” raise questions about the safety of eating these artisanal products

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Many Pregnancy Losses Are Caused by Errors in Cell Division

Odd cell divisions could help explain why even young, healthy couples might struggle to get pregnant

Gina Jiménez

'Microbiome of Death' Uncovered on Decomposing Corpses Could Aid Forensics

Microbes that lurk in decomposing human corpses could help forensic detectives establish a person's time of death

Christoph Schwaiger, LiveScience

Weird ‘Obelisks’ Found in Human Gut May be Virus-Like Entities

Rod-shaped fragments of RNA called “obelisks” were discovered in gut and mouth bacteria for the first time

Joanna Thompson

Semen Has Its Own Microbiome—And It Might Influence Fertility

Recent research found a species of bacteria living in semen that’s associated with infertility and has links to the vaginal microbiome

Andrew Chapman

Bacteria Make Decisions Based on Generational Memories

Bacteria choose to swarm based on what happened to their great-grandparents

Allison Parshall

Your Body Has Its Own Built-In Ozempic

Popular weight-loss and diabetes drugs, such as Ozempic and Wegovy, target metabolic pathways that gut microbes and food molecules already play a key role in regulating

Christopher Damman, The Conversation US

See Your Body’s Cells in Size and Number

The larger a cell type is, the rarer it is in the body—and vice versa—a new study shows

Clara Moskowitz, Jen Christiansen, Ni-ka Ford

Subterranean ‘Microbial Dark Matter’ Reveals a Strange Dichotomy

The genes of microbes living as deep as 1.5 kilometers below the surface reveal a split between minimalist and maximalist lifestyles

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The Vaginal Microbiome May Affect Health More than We Thought

A recent study finds varying combinations of microbes in the vaginal microbiome may influence health outcomes such as risk of sexually transmitted disease and preterm birth

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BMC Microbiology

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The impact of gut microbiota on human health

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Hospital distribution, seasonality, time trends and antifungal susceptibility profiles of all Aspergillus species isolated from clinical samples from 2015 to 2022 in a tertiary care hospital

Authors: Iacopo Franconi, Cosmeri Rizzato, Emilia Ghelardi and Antonella Lupetti

Comparative analysis of proteomic adaptations in Enterococcus faecalis and Enterococcus faecium after long term bile acid exposure

Authors: Annika Dreyer, Christof Lenz, Uwe Groß, Wolfgang Bohne and Andreas Erich Zautner

Influence of PhoPQ and PmrAB two component system alternations on colistin resistance from non- mcr colistin resistant clinical E. Coli strains

Authors: Ching-Hsun Wang, L. Kristopher Siu, Feng-Yee Chang, Yu-Kuo Tsai, Li-Yueh Huang and Jung-Chung Lin

Staphylococcus aureus foldase PrsA contributes to the folding and secretion of protein A

Authors: Mei-Hui Lin, Chao-Chin Liu, Chiao-Wen Lu and Jwu-Ching Shu

A hypervirulent Acinetobacter baumannii strain has robust anti-phagocytosis ability

Authors: Yan Li, Mohan Jv, Yuan Zhuang, Xu Zhao and Xiaoxiong Hu

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Genome-wide discovery of structured noncoding RNAs in bacteria

Authors: Shira Stav, Ruben M. Atilho, Gayan Mirihana Arachchilage, Giahoa Nguyen, Gadareth Higgs and Ronald R. Breaker

The Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio of the human microbiota changes with age

Authors: D Mariat, O Firmesse, F Levenez, VD Guimarăes, H Sokol, J Doré, G Corthier and J-P Furet

Fungal-specific PCR primers developed for analysis of the ITS region of environmental DNA extracts

Authors: Kendall J Martin and Paul T Rygiewicz

ITS as an environmental DNA barcode for fungi: an in silico approach reveals potential PCR biases

Authors: Eva Bellemain, Tor Carlsen, Christian Brochmann, Eric Coissac, Pierre Taberlet and Håvard Kauserud

Protein secretion systems in bacterial-host associations, and their description in the Gene Ontology

Authors: Tsai-Tien Tseng, Brett M Tyler and João C Setubal

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BMC Microbiology is an open access, peer-reviewed journal that considers articles on all microorganisms - bacteria, archaea, algae and fungi, viruses, unicellular parasites and helminths. It considers studies on all aspects of the biology and biochemistry of microorganisms including but not limited to cell biology, genomics, signalling, the interaction of the microbes with the environment and host, mechanistic and functional insights into infection and disease, and biotechnological application in science and industry.

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Page 1 of 12

Glutaminolysis regulates endometrial fibrosis in intrauterine adhesion via modulating mitochondrial function

Endometrial fibrosis, a significant characteristic of intrauterine adhesion (IUA), is caused by the excessive differentiation and activation of endometrial stromal cells (ESCs). Glutaminolysis is the metabolic...

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The long-chain flavodoxin FldX1 improves the biodegradation of 4-hydroxyphenylacetate and 3-hydroxyphenylacetate and counteracts the oxidative stress associated to aromatic catabolism in Paraburkholderia xenovorans

Bacterial aromatic degradation may cause oxidative stress. The long-chain flavodoxin FldX1 of Paraburkholderia xenovorans LB400 counteracts reactive oxygen species (ROS). The aim of this study was to evaluate the...

MicroRNA-148b secreted by bovine oviductal extracellular vesicles enhance embryo quality through BPM/TGF-beta pathway

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) and their cargoes, including MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play a crucial role in cell-to-cell communication. We previously demonstrated the upregulation of bta-mir-148b in EVs from oviductal...

YME1L-mediated mitophagy protects renal tubular cells against cellular senescence under diabetic conditions

The senescence of renal tubular epithelial cells (RTECs) is crucial in the progression of diabetic kidney disease (DKD). Accumulating evidence suggests a close association between insufficient mitophagy and RT...

Effects of latroeggtoxin-VI on dopamine and α-synuclein in PC12 cells and the implications for Parkinson’s disease

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is characterized by death of dopaminergic neurons leading to dopamine deficiency, excessive α-synuclein facilitating Lewy body formation, etc. Latroeggtoxin-VI (LETX-VI), a proteinaceo...

Glial-restricted progenitor cells: a cure for diseased brain?

The central nervous system (CNS) is home to neuronal and glial cells. Traditionally, glia was disregarded as just the structural support across the brain and spinal cord, in striking contrast to neurons, alway...

Carbapenem-resistant hypervirulent ST23 Klebsiella pneumoniae with a highly transmissible dual-carbapenemase plasmid in Chile

The convergence of hypervirulence and carbapenem resistance in the bacterial pathogen Klebsiella pneumoniae represents a critical global health concern. Hypervirulent K. pneumoniae (hvKp) strains, frequently from...

Endometrial mesenchymal stromal/stem cells improve regeneration of injured endometrium in mice

The monthly regeneration of human endometrial tissue is maintained by the presence of human endometrial mesenchymal stromal/stem cells (eMSC), a cell population co-expressing the perivascular markers CD140b an...

Embryo development is impaired by sperm mitochondrial-derived ROS

Basal energetic metabolism in sperm, particularly oxidative phosphorylation, is known to condition not only their oocyte fertilising ability, but also the subsequent embryo development. While the molecular pat...

Fibroblasts inhibit osteogenesis by regulating nuclear-cytoplasmic shuttling of YAP in mesenchymal stem cells and secreting DKK1

Fibrous scars frequently form at the sites of bone nonunion when attempts to repair bone fractures have failed. However, the detailed mechanism by which fibroblasts, which are the main components of fibrous sc...

MSC-derived exosomes protect auditory hair cells from neomycin-induced damage via autophagy regulation

Sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) poses a major threat to both physical and mental health; however, there is still a lack of effective drugs to treat the disease. Recently, novel biological therapies, such as ...

Alpha-synuclein dynamics bridge Type-I Interferon response and SARS-CoV-2 replication in peripheral cells

Increasing evidence suggests a double-faceted role of alpha-synuclein (α-syn) following infection by a variety of viruses, including SARS-CoV-2. Although α-syn accumulation is known to contribute to cell toxic...

Lactadherin immunoblockade in small extracellular vesicles inhibits sEV-mediated increase of pro-metastatic capacities

Tumor-derived small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) can promote tumorigenic and metastatic capacities in less aggressive recipient cells mainly through the biomolecules in their cargo. However, despite recent ad...

Integration of ATAC-seq and RNA-seq identifies MX1-mediated AP-1 transcriptional regulation as a therapeutic target for Down syndrome

Growing evidence has suggested that Type I Interferon (I-IFN) plays a potential role in the pathogenesis of Down Syndrome (DS). This work investigates the underlying function of MX1, an effector gene of I-IFN,...

The novel roles of YULINK in the migration, proliferation and glycolysis of pulmonary arterial smooth muscle cells: implications for pulmonary arterial hypertension

Abnormal remodeling of the pulmonary vasculature, characterized by the proliferation and migration of pulmonary arterial smooth muscle cells (PASMCs) along with dysregulated glycolysis, is a pathognomonic feat...

Electroacupuncture promotes neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus and improves pattern separation in an early Alzheimer's disease mouse model

Impaired pattern separation occurs in the early stage of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and hippocampal dentate gyrus (DG) neurogenesis participates in pattern separation. Here, we investigated whether spatial memo...

Role of SYVN1 in the control of airway remodeling in asthma protection by promoting SIRT2 ubiquitination and degradation

Asthma is a heterogenous disease that characterized by airway remodeling. SYVN1 (Synoviolin 1) acts as an E3 ligase to mediate the suppression of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress through ubiquitination and de...

Advances towards the use of gastrointestinal tumor patient-derived organoids as a therapeutic decision-making tool

In December 2022 the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) removed the requirement that drugs in development must undergo animal testing before clinical evaluation, a declaration that now demands the establish...

Melatonin alleviates pyroptosis by regulating the SIRT3/FOXO3α/ROS axis and interacting with apoptosis in Atherosclerosis progression

Atherosclerosis (AS), a significant contributor to cardiovascular disease (CVD), is steadily rising with the aging of the global population. Pyroptosis and apoptosis, both caspase-mediated cell death mechanism...

Prenatal ethanol exposure and changes in fetal neuroendocrine metabolic programming

Prenatal ethanol exposure (PEE) (mainly through maternal alcohol consumption) has become widespread. However, studies suggest that it can cause intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR) and multi-organ developmen...

Autologous non-invasively derived stem cells mitochondria transfer shows therapeutic advantages in human embryo quality rescue

The decline in the quantity and quality of mitochondria are closely associated with infertility, particularly in advanced maternal age. Transferring autologous mitochondria into the oocytes of infertile female...

Development of synthetic modulator enabling long-term propagation and neurogenesis of human embryonic stem cell-derived neural progenitor cells

Neural progenitor cells (NPCs) are essential for in vitro drug screening and cell-based therapies for brain-related disorders, necessitating well-defined and reproducible culture systems. Current strategies em...

Heat-responsive microRNAs participate in regulating the pollen fertility stability of CMS-D2 restorer line under high-temperature stress

Anther development and pollen fertility of cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) conditioned by Gossypium harknessii cytoplasm (CMS-D2) restorer lines are susceptible to continuous high-temperature (HT) stress in sum...

Chemogenetic inhibition of NTS astrocytes normalizes cardiac autonomic control and ameliorate hypertension during chronic intermittent hypoxia

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is characterized by recurrent episodes of chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH), which has been linked to the development of sympathoexcitation and hypertension. Furthermore, it has ...

SARS-CoV-2 spike protein S1 activates Cx43 hemichannels and disturbs intracellular Ca 2+ dynamics

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) causes the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). An aspect of high uncertainty is whether the SARS-CoV-2 per se or the systemic inflammation ...

The effect of zofenopril on the cardiovascular system of spontaneously hypertensive rats treated with the ACE2 inhibitor MLN-4760

Angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) plays a crucial role in the infection cycle of SARS-CoV-2 responsible for formation of COVID-19 pandemic. In the cardiovascular system, the virus enters the cells by bind...

Two murine models of sepsis: immunopathological differences between the sexes—possible role of TGFβ1 in female resistance to endotoxemia

Endotoxic shock (ExSh) and cecal ligature and puncture (CLP) are models that induce sepsis. In this work, we investigated early immunologic and histopathologic changes induced by ExSh or CLP models in female a...

An intracellular, non-oxidative factor activates in vitro chromatin fragmentation in pig sperm

In vitro incubation of epididymal and vas deferens sperm with Mn 2+ induces Sperm Chromatin Fragmentation (SCF), a mechanism that causes double-stranded breaks in toroid-linker regions (TLRs). Whether this mechani...

Focal ischemic stroke modifies microglia-derived exosomal miRNAs: potential role of mir-212-5p in neuronal protection and functional recovery

Ischemic stroke is a severe type of stroke with high disability and mortality rates. In recent years, microglial exosome-derived miRNAs have been shown to be promising candidates for the treatment of ischemic ...

S -Nitrosylation in endothelial cells contributes to tumor cell adhesion and extravasation during breast cancer metastasis

Nitric oxide is produced by different nitric oxide synthases isoforms. NO activates two signaling pathways, one dependent on soluble guanylate cyclase and protein kinase G, and other where NO post-translationa...

Identifying pyroptosis- and inflammation-related genes in intracranial aneurysms based on bioinformatics analysis

Intracranial aneurysm (IA) is the most common cerebrovascular disease, and subarachnoid hemorrhage caused by its rupture can seriously impede nerve function. Pyroptosis is an inflammatory mode of cell death wh...

Drosophila Atlastin regulates synaptic vesicle mobilization independent of bone morphogenetic protein signaling

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) contacts endosomes in all parts of a motor neuron, including the axon and presynaptic terminal, to move structural proteins, proteins that send signals, and lipids over long dist...

Mucin1 induced trophoblast dysfunction in gestational diabetes mellitus via Wnt/β-catenin pathway

To elucidate the role of Mucin1 (MUC1) in the trophoblast function (glucose uptake and apoptosis) of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) women through the Wnt/β-catenin pathway.

Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSCs) alleviate paclitaxel-induced spermatogenesis defects and maintain male fertility

Chemotherapeutic drugs can cause reproductive damage by affecting sperm quality and other aspects of male fertility. Stem cells are thought to alleviate the damage caused by chemotherapy drugs and to play role...

Exploring the Neandertal legacy of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma risk in Eurasians

The genomes of present-day non-Africans are composed of 1–3% of Neandertal-derived DNA as a consequence of admixture events between Neandertals and anatomically modern humans about 50–60 thousand years ago. Ne...

Identification and analysis of key hypoxia- and immune-related genes in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), an autosomal dominant genetic disease, is the main cause of sudden death in adolescents and athletes globally. Hypoxia and immune factors have been revealed to be related to ...

How do prolonged anchorage-free lifetimes strengthen non-small-cell lung cancer cells to evade anoikis? – A link with altered cellular metabolomics

Malignant cells adopt anoikis resistance to survive anchorage-free stresses and initiate cancer metastasis. It is still unknown how varying periods of anchorage loss contribute to anoikis resistance, cell migr...

Single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with wine fermentation and adaptation to nitrogen limitation in wild and domesticated yeast strains

For more than 20 years, Saccharomyces cerevisiae has served as a model organism for genetic studies and molecular biology, as well as a platform for biotechnology (e.g., wine production). One of the important eco...

Investigating the dark-side of the genome: a barrier to human disease variant discovery?

The human genome contains regions that cannot be adequately assembled or aligned using next generation short-read sequencing technologies. More than 2500 genes are known contain such ‘dark’ regions. In this st...

Hyperbaric oxygen treatment increases intestinal stem cell proliferation through the mTORC1/S6K1 signaling pathway in Mus musculus

Hyperbaric oxygen treatment (HBOT) has been reported to modulate the proliferation of neural and mesenchymal stem cell populations, but the molecular mechanisms underlying these effects are not completely unde...

Polar microalgae extracts protect human HaCaT keratinocytes from damaging stimuli and ameliorate psoriatic skin inflammation in mice

Polar microalgae contain unique compounds that enable them to adapt to extreme environments. As the skin barrier is our first line of defense against external threats, polar microalgae extracts may possess res...

Correction: Utility of melatonin in mitigating ionizing radiation‑induced testis injury through synergistic interdependence of its biological properties

The original article was published in Biological Research 2022 55 :33

Beyond energy provider: multifunction of lipid droplets in embryonic development

Since the discovery, lipid droplets (LDs) have been recognized to be sites of cellular energy reserves, providing energy when necessary to sustain cellular life activities. Many studies have reported large num...

Retraction Note: Tridax procumbens flavonoids: a prospective bioactive compound increased osteoblast differentiation and trabecular bone formation

Electroacupuncture protective effects after cerebral ischemia are mediated through mir-219a inhibition.

Electroacupuncture (EA) is a complementary and alternative therapy which has shown protective effects on vascular cognitive impairment (VCI). However, the underlying mechanisms are not entirely understood.

Topsoil and subsoil bacterial community assemblies across different drainage conditions in a mountain environment

High mountainous environments are of particular interest as they play an essential role for life and human societies, while being environments which are highly vulnerable to climate change and land use intensi...

Functional defects in hiPSCs-derived cardiomyocytes from patients with a PLEKHM2-mutation associated with dilated cardiomyopathy and left ventricular non-compaction

Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a primary myocardial disease, leading to heart failure and excessive risk of sudden cardiac death with rather poorly understood pathophysiology. In 2015, Parvari's group ident...

Human VDAC pseudogenes: an emerging role for VDAC1P8 pseudogene in acute myeloid leukemia

Voltage-dependent anion selective channels (VDACs) are the most abundant mitochondrial outer membrane proteins, encoded in mammals by three genes, VDAC1 , 2 and 3 , mostly ubiquitously expressed. As 'mitochondrial ...

ABCA1 transporter promotes the motility of human melanoma cells by modulating their plasma membrane organization

Melanoma is one of the most aggressive and deadliest skin tumor. Cholesterol content in melanoma cells is elevated, and a portion of it accumulates into lipid rafts. Therefore, the plasma membrane cholesterol ...

Acupuncture regulates the apoptosis of ovarian granulosa cells in polycystic ovarian syndrome-related abnormal follicular development through LncMEG3-mediated inhibition of miR-21-3p

The main features of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) are abnormal follicular development and ovulatory dysfunction, which are caused by excessive apoptosis of ovarian granulosa cells. Acupuncture has been sho...

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• Microb Biotechnol
• v.14(1); 2021 Jan

Defining how microorganisms benefit human health

Maria l. marco.

1 Department of Food Science and Technology, University of California, Davis, Davis CA, 95616 USA

An appreciation for how microorganisms can benefit human health has grown over the past century. The future of this research will be to identify the specific microbial enzymatic pathways and molecules necessary for health promotion. Some of these ‘beneficial factors’ are already known for probiotics and species in the human microbiome, however, precise descriptions of the mechanistic details for their effects remain to be discovered. The need for this research is elevated by the potential use of microorganisms for preventing and treating the non‐communicable diseases which are now the leading causes of death worldwide.

The ‘golden age of bacteriology’ was the most impactful and long‐lasting period of discovery in the history of microbiological research (Blevins and Bronze, 2010 ). Initiated by the work of Louis Pasteur in the 1860s, Pasteur, Robert Koch, and other contemporaries disproved spontaneous generation, verified the germ theory of disease, identified many of the known bacterial pathogens, and developed microbiology laboratory methods still in use today. As with many scientific breakthroughs, advances made by the 19th century microbiologists were stimulated by prevailing societal needs. At that time, infectious disease was the primary cause of death (Smith et al ., 2012 ). Pneumonia, tuberculosis, and diarrhoea were at the top of all causes of mortality (Department of Commerce and Labor, Bureau of the Census, 1906 ). The work of those early microbiologists resulted in the development of public health programs and widespread changes in societal norms and attitudes that emphasized how to minimize exposure to or eliminate ‘germs’ (Tomes, 1998 ; Smith et al ., 2012 ).

We are now in a new age in microbiological research (Blaser, 2014 ). The start of this era is marked by the work of Carl Woese and colleagues who pioneered the development of methods to study microbial phylogeny and identify and investigate microorganisms without the need for laboratory cultivation (Pace, 2009 ). Subsequent advancements, most notably improvements in DNA sequencing technologies and computing power enabled broad surveys and deep interrogation of microbial habitats (Escobar‐Zepeda et al ., 2015 ). Much like the catalyst for the rapid progress that occurred in the late 1800s, the present time also has societal urgency. Cardiovascular diseases and other non‐communicable diseases are now the leading causes of death worldwide (GBD 2016 Causes of Death Collaborators, 2017 ). Climate change and other human‐made damage to fragile ecosystems are existential threats. Concurrent with the emergence of these issues, focus has shifted away from emphasis on microorganisms as germs to also consider how they can be beneficial and useful for human health and the environment. Expansion in this direction of inquiry involves all aspects of microbiology including asking how microorganisms may be used for preventing or reversing pollution, improving food security and safety, and maintaining human health and well‐being. Although research over the past 100 years has identified microorganisms able to confer benefits, there still remain significant gaps on the precise molecular mechanisms responsible for those outcomes.

Knowledge on how specific microbial compounds and activities result in health benefits has been developing over a long trajectory (Yong, 2016 ). Commensal microorganisms were understood to inhabit the human body since the time of Antonie van Leeuwenhoek. At the start of the twentieth century, Issac Kendall described the gut as a ‘singularly perfect incubator’ (Kendall, 1909 ) and Elie Metchnikoff and Henry Tissier proposed applying microorganisms in fermented foods or from the gastrointestinal tract to support human health (McFarland, 2015 ). Throughout the twentieth century, the science of probiotics continued to develop (McFarland, 2015 ) alongside advancements in deciphering the physiology and function of commensal microbial inhabitants of the human body (Schwiertz, 2016 ). It is now firmly established that there are positive roles for the microbiota inhabiting the alimentary, respiratory, and vaginal tracts, skin, and other exposed sites (Cho and Blaser, 2012 ). Systematic reviews and meta‐analyses of clinical trials support the use of probiotics (Merenstein et al ., 2020 ). To address questions of how microbes can be beneficial, numerous general mechanisms have been proposed such as prevention of pathogen colonization, modulation of the immune system, the digestion, detoxification, and production of nutrients, stimulation of cellular differentiation, improvement of barrier function, and alteration of the gut‐brain axis. Those broad mechanistic categories have been used to summarize potential benefits conveyed by the autochthonous microbiota and probiotics alike.

The future of this research is the identification of the specific metabolites, proteins, and other compounds made by microorganisms that trigger specific cellular responses in the host to result in sustaining or improving health and well‐being. This work will lead to precise mechanistic descriptions of ‘beneficial factors’, or the specific microbial enzymatic pathways and molecules necessary for health promotion. As might be expected based on the known complexity of the human microbiome, it will not be a trivial task. Similar to the massive prior and ongoing efforts to identify virulence factors of human pathogens and molecular pathogenesis mechanisms that lead to disease, so too will there be the need for allocation of significant effort and resources to this still emerging field of study.

Presently, only a fraction of beneficial, or functional, factors made by microorganisms are known. Short‐chain fatty acids (SCFA) are currently the best characterized microbial metabolites regarded to benefit health. These compounds are major products of anaerobic carbohydrate and protein fermentation by intestinal microorganisms. Enzymatic pathways for SCFA acetate, propionate, and butyrate biosynthesis are known (Louis and Flint, 2017 ), as are the SCFA receptors (free fatty acid/G protein‐coupled receptors FFA3/GPR41 and FFA2/GPR43) that result in modulation of metabolic, immune, and endocrine responses (Bolognini et al ., 2021 ). Other microbial compounds generated as intermediate or end products of microbial metabolism were shown to benefit health, although a more complete description of mechanistic details for their effects remains to be discovered. Examples include metabolites of amino acids such as tryptophan, glutamate, histidine, and phenylalanine which are modified by some bacteria to compounds with neuroactive or immunomodulatory properties (Engevik and Versalovic, 2017 ; Peters et al ., 2019 ). Lactic acid, a compound present in high abundance in some fermented foods, downregulates pro‐inflammatory responses and stimulates intestinal development (Iraporda et al ., 2015 ; Lee et al ., 2018 ). Vitamins including folates, riboflavin, cobalamin and vitamin K are synthesized for use by microorganisms but may also be absorbed in the digestive tract (Ruan et al ., 2020 ), and certain chromosomal CpG DNA motifs are immunomodulatory (Li et al ., 2020 ). Lastly, overall growth of certain microorganisms may be beneficial by resulting in competitive exclusion of pathogenic microbes via the utilization of scarce resources (for example iron acquisition in the digestive tract (Deriu et al ., 2013 )).

Secondary metabolites and signalling molecules are also capable of supporting human health. These functional factors include compounds such as bacteriocins that are best understood for their bactericidal activity against human pathogens but also confer direct effects on tissues with potential use as anticancer and barrier protective agents (Hegarty et al ., 2016 ; Heeney et al ., 2019 ). Products of nonribosomal peptide synthetases also have antimicrobial (Engevik and Versalovic, 2017 ) or other bioactive (Guo et al ., 2017 ) properties and are represented in the many small‐molecule gene clusters present in the human microbiome (Cimermancic et al ., 2014 ; Donia et al ., 2014 ). Quorum‐sensing peptides and different peptidic compounds induce cytoprotective responses (Tao et al ., 2006 ; Fujiya et al ., 2007 ). Other secreted structures such as extracellular membrane vesicles can carry a variety of compounds and may result in anti‐inflammatory, neurotrophic and other effects (Caruana and Walper, 2020 ).

Microbial cell surface compounds are also recognized by epithelial and immune cells. Compounds with microbial associated microbial patterns that induce innate immunity such as those found in peptidoglycan, lipoteichoic acids, flagella, and pili are made by probiotics and human commensals (Lebeer et al ., 2010 ; Liu et al ., 2020 ). Certain cell surface and membrane proteins confer distinct host cell responses including disease mitigation and epithelial protection (Engevik and Versalovic, 2017 ; Plovier et al ., 2017 ; Liu et al ., 2020 ; Yan and Polk, 2020 ). Even some membrane lipids such as sphingolipids (An et al ., 2014 ) and those synthesized as a result microbial detoxification polyunsaturated fatty acids (Miyamoto et al ., 2019 ) may be beneficial.

Much of the evidence on health‐supporting microbial compounds is from studies on Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium . Besides molecular characterization those general stemming from their use as probiotics (Lebeer et al ., 2018 ), mechanistic studies of intestinal microbiota have shown that compounds made by Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium are important for healthy gut function (Bottacini et al ., 2017 ; Heeney et al ., 2017 ). Lactobacilli are also highly abundant in the vagina (Ma et al ., 2020 ) and are found in the upper respiratory tract (De Boeck et al ., 2020 ). Lactobacillus and other lactic acid bacteria in fermented foods are sources of bacteria in the human gut microbiome (Pasolli et al ., 2020 ; Taylor et al ., 2020 ). These bacteria and products made as a result of their transformation of food components are important contributors to the health benefits resulting from the consumption of fermented foods (Marco et al ., 2017 ). Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium species will continue to be studied due to their presence in the human microbiome and regular intake in human diets. They are also efficacious in clinical studies, relatively easily applied (generally recognized as safe), amenable to genetic manipulation for mechanistic research, and there is already relatively abundant, albeit incomplete, knowledge on their genetic diversity, ecology and metabolism.

As the number of verified microorganism‐derived, health‐promoting compounds increases, so too will the diversity of microbial species capable of making them. Strains of Escherichia coli, Bacillus, Propinibacterium and Saccharomyces boulardii are currently used as probiotics. Cutibacterium acnes (Paetzold et al ., 2019 ) and Lactococcus lactis (Radaic et al ., 2020 ) have shown promise as probiotics on the skin and in the oral cavity, respectively. Among prominent bacterial species in the human intestine, pathways for polysaccharide metabolism by Ruminococcus, Bacteroides and other taxa will continue to be elucidated (Martens et al ., 2014 ). Faecalibacterium prausnitzii and Akkermansia mucinophila have emerged as gut commensals with therapeutic properties and for which specific functional compounds have been identified (Quévrain et al ., 2016 ; Plovier et al ., 2017 ). Just as the immune system recognizes specific bacterial species (Belkaid and Harrison, 2017 ), it is expected that these examples are just the start to the identification of the microorganisms and compounds responsible for health promotion by the human microbiome.

Importantly, many of the known microbial beneficial factors were found as a result of prediction or educated guesses rather than through genetic or biochemical screening approaches. Identification of new compounds will be accelerated by expanding the use of comparative genomics, mutant libraries and biochemical characterization of cell fractions in combination with functional screens with reporter cell lines. However, it is noted that there are also limitations to those methods such as the need for genetically distinguishable features and the necessity for the beneficial compounds to be made in laboratory culture medium in vitro . The fact that some of these compounds will be essential and required for microbial growth and survival also creates challenges for identification with mutant libraries. Nonetheless, these global efforts are expected to be productive for identification of novel secondary metabolites and certain non‐essential, cell surface proteins or cell structures, many of which are likely to exhibit a high level of genetic variation between strains.

It is also expected that some beneficial factors will be widespread and shared among numerous microbial taxonomic groups. These compounds will include essential proteins and other fundamental components of microbial cells as well as those that arose during adaptation to selection pressures in the host and other environments. For example, the variety of bacterial species and enzymes responsible for the breakdown complex polysaccharides is expanding and showing some generalizable features (Flint et al ., 2012 ; Cantu‐Jungles and Hamaker, 2020 ). For probiotics, there is an emerging view that well‐studied species known to confer health benefits may do so via the principle of ‘shared benefits’ (Sanders et al ., 2018 ). This principle is based on the knowledge that certain bacterial species have conserved, or core, properties which may be responsible for improving health.

Once a more complete view of the functional metabolites and cell components made by microorganisms is known, it will be possible to propose personalized approaches, taking into account differences in human genetics, lifestyle, age and diet. It is already known that the composition of the gut microbiome is tightly linked to these factors (Lozupone et al ., 2012 ). It is also established that probiotic cell composition changes in situ depending on diet and the prevailing conditions in the digestive tract (Marco and Tachon, 2013 ). However, until a more complete understanding of beneficial microbes is reached, diet, age, health and other characteristics should be collected in microbiome and probiotic intervention studies. These data may eventually be useful for who is most likely to be responsive to microbial treatment.

In the process of elucidating how individual microbial compounds improve health, research will move beyond correlation and associative studies to those that establish causation (Fischbach, 2018 ). Importantly, direct effects on epithelial, immune, and other cell types will need to be untangled from those resulting from modulating the function of the resident microbiome. Thus, gnotobiotic animal models and cell, tissue and organ cultures will continue to be needed and used in concert with animal models of health and disease. Besides focus on the properties of individual strains in isolation, advances in metagenome sequencing and bioinformatics methods are expected to continue to improve strain‐level resolution of the human microbiota (Yan et al ., 2020 ). Systems biology approaches will be important for identifying the key features necessary for health promotion by addressing the complexity of the human microbiome and its capacity to synthesize thousands of metabolites (Greenblum et al ., 2013 ). These findings can then be applied in model microbial community reconstructions (Toju et al ., 2020 ). Identification of human cell receptors and signal transduction pathways modulated by the beneficial effector compounds will also be aided by the on‐going, rapid gains in knowledge in diverse fields such as mucosal immunology and endocrinology.

Ultimately, beneficial factors should be tested in purified forms to verify specificity and selectivity. The compounds should be given in doses needed for verifying physiologic effects and for confirming whether resident or probiotic microbes synthesize them in situ in quantities sufficient for the expected health outcomes. Rather than in a purified form, it may also be found that some beneficial microbial cell products are most effective when delivered by the microorganism itself. Intact microbial cells expressing multiple beneficial factors may be important for complementary or synergistic interactions with human tissues that may not be achieved when those compounds are provided separately.

When purified compounds and intact strains are tested, these efforts will ultimately improve probiotic applications by enabling the development of guidance on the specific dose, frequency and duration of strain application. In the future, strain use will be decided based on the production levels of the beneficial factors and site on the body where they are needed. Answers will also be reached on the need for temporary colonization as opposed to long‐term probiotic engraftment. Contraindications for probiotic use will be clearer as will the potential for adverse effects.

Identification of beneficial compounds and processes of autochthonous microbes is expected to lead to resolution to the overarching question of what defines a healthy human microbiome. Once this is known, new therapies and diets can be developed to adjust the numbers of the needed microorganisms to the appropriate levels. This knowledge will also be useful for improving interpretations of inter‐individual and inter‐study discrepancies between gut microbiome responses to drugs and individual dietary nutrients (e.g. resistant starch type 2 (Bendiks et al ., 2020 )).

Microbiology research in the late nineteenth century catalysed the development of medical and public health practices that led to significant reductions in infectious disease. A similar opportunity is upon us to apply the human microbiome and probiotics for preventing and treating non‐communicable, chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disease, obesity, type 2 diabetes and cancer. The urgency of this moment may provide the essential stimulus for accelerating multi‐disciplinary efforts to not only identify microorganisms required for good health and well‐being but also the compounds and underlying molecular mechanisms responsible for the benefits they confer.

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Student spotlight: Victory Yinka-Banjo

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This interview is part of a series from the MIT Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science featuring students answering questions about themselves and life at the Institute. Today’s interviewee, Victory Yinka-Banjo, is a junior majoring in MIT Course 6-7: Computer Science and Molecular Biology. Yinka-Banjo keeps a packed schedule: She is a member of the Office of Minority Education (OME) Laureates and Leaders program ; a 2024 fellow in the public service-oriented BCAP program ; has previously served as secretary of the African Students’ Association, and is now undergraduate president of the MIT Biotech Group ; additionally, she is a SuperUROP Scholar ; a member of the Ginkgo Bioworks' Cultivate Fellowship (a program that supports students interested in synthetic biology/biotech); and an ambassador for Leadership Brainery , which equips juniors/leaders of color with the resources needed to prepare for graduate school. She recently found time to share a peek into her MIT experience.

Q: What’s your favorite building or room within MIT?

A: It has to be the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard on Ames Street in Kendall Square, where I do my SuperUROP research in Caroline Uhler's lab . Outside of classes, you're 90 percent likely to find me on the newest mezzanine floor (between the 11th and 12th floor), in one of the UROP [Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program] rooms I share with two other undergrads in the lab. We have standing desks, an amazing coffee/hot chocolate machine, external personal monitors, comfortable sofas — everything, really! Not only is it my favorite building, it is also my favorite study spot on campus. In fact, I am there so often that when friends recently planned a birthday surprise for me, they told me they were considering having it at the Broad, since they could count on me being there. 

I think the most beautiful thing about this building, apart from the beautiful view of Cambridge we get from being on one of the highest floors, is that when I was applying to MIT from high school, I had fantasized working at the Broad because of the groundbreaking research. To think that it is now a reality makes me appreciate every minute I spend on my floor, whether I am doing actual research or some last-minute studying for a midterm. 

Q: Tell me about one interest or hobby you’ve discovered since you came to MIT.

A: I have become pretty involved in the performing arts since I got to MIT! I have acted in two plays run by the Black Theater Guild, which was revived during my freshman year by one of my friends. I played a supporting role in the first play called “Nkrumah’s Last Day,” which was about Ghana at a time of governance under Kwame Nkrumah, its first president. In the second play, a ghost story/comedy called “Shooting the Sheriff,” I played one of the lead roles. Both caused me to step way out of my comfort zone and I loved the experiences because of that. I also got to act with some of my close friends who were first-time stage actors as well, so that made it even more fun. 

Outside of acting, I also do spoken word/poetry. I have performed at events like the African Students Association Cultural Night, MIT Africa Innovate Conference, and Black Women’s Alliance Banquet. I try to use my pieces to share my experiences both within and beyond MIT, offering the perspective of an international Nigerian student. My favorite piece was called “Code Switch,” and I used concepts from [computer science] and biology (especially genetic code switching), to draw parallels with linguistic code-switching, and emphasize the beauty and originality of authenticity. This semester, I’m also a part of MIT Monologues and will be performing a piece called “Inheritance,” about the beauty of self-love found in affection transferred from a mother. 

Q: Are you a re-reader or a re-watcher — and if so, what are your comfort books, shows, or movies?

A: I don’t watch too many movies, although I used to be obsessed with all parts of “High School Musical;” and the only book I’ve ever reread is “Americanah.” I would actually say I am a re-podcaster! My go-to comfort-podcast is this episode, “A Breakthrough Unfolds”, by Google DeepMind . It makes me a little emotional every time I listen. It is such an exemplification of the power of science and its ability to break boundaries that humans formerly thought impossible. As a computer science and biology major, I am particularly interested in these two disciplines’ applications to relevant problems, like the protein-folding problem discussed in the episode, which DeepMind's solution for has caused massive advances in the biotech industry. It makes me so hopeful for the future of biology, and the ways in which computation can advance human health and precision medicine.

Q: Who’s your favorite artist?

A: When I think of the word 'artist,' I think of music artists first. There are so many who I love; my favorites also evolve over time. I’m Christian, so I listen to a lot of gospel music. I’m also Nigerian so I listen to a lot of Afrobeats. Since last summer, I’ve been obsessed with Limoblaze , who fuses both gospel and Afrobeats music! KB, a super talented gospel rapper , is also somewhat tied in ranking with Limo for me right now. His songs are probably ~50 percent of my workout playlist.

Q: It’s time to get on the shuttle to the first Mars colony, and you can only bring one personal item. What are you going to bring?

A: Oooh, this is a tough one, but it has to be my Brass Rat. Ever since I got mine at the end of sophomore year, it’s been nearly impossible for me to take it off. If there’s ever a time I forget to wear it, my finger feels off for the entire day. 

Q: Tell me about one conversation that changed the trajectory of your life.

A: Two specific career-defining moments come to mind. They aren’t quite conversations, but they are talks/lectures that I was deeply inspired by. The first was towards the end of high school when I watched this TEDx Talk about storing data in DNA . At the time, I was getting ready to apply to colleges and I knew that biology and computer science were two things I really liked, but I didn’t really understand the possibilities that could be birthed from them coming together as an interdisciplinary field. The TEDx talk was my eureka moment for computational biology. 

The second moment was in my junior fall during an introductory lecture to “Lab Fundamentals for Bioengineering,” by Professor Jacquin Niles. I started the school year with a lot of confusion about my future post-grad, and the relevance of my planned career path to the communities that I care about. Basically, I was unsure about how computational biology fit into the context of Nigeria’s problems, especially because my interest in the field is oriented towards molecular biology/medicine, not necessarily public health. 

In the U.S., most research focuses on diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s, which, while important, are not the most pressing health conditions in tropical regions like Nigeria. When Professor Niles told us about his lab’s dedication to malaria research from a molecular biology standpoint, it was yet another eureka moment. Like, Yes! Computation and molecular biology can indeed mitigate diseases that affect developing nations like Nigeria — diseases that are understudied, and whose research is underfunded. 

Since his talk, I found a renewed sense of purpose. Grad school isn’t the end goal. Using my skills to shine a light on the issues affecting my people that deserve far more attention is the goal. I’m so excited to see how I will use computational biology to possibly create the next cure to a commonly neglected tropical disease, or accelerate the diagnosis of one. Whatever it may be, I know that it will be close to home, eventually.

Q: What are you looking forward to about life after graduation? What do you think you’ll miss about MIT?

A: Thinking about graduating actually makes me sad. I’ve grown to love MIT. The biggest thing I’ll miss, though, is Independent Activities Period (IAP). It is such a unique part of the MIT experience. I’ve done a web development class/competition, research, a data science challenge, a molecular bio crash course, and a deep learning crash course over the past three IAPs. It is such an amazing time to try something low stakes, forget about grades, explore Boston, build a robot, travel abroad, do less, go slower, really rejuvenate before the spring, and embrace MIT’s motto of “mind and hand” by just being creative and explorative. It is such an exemplification of what it means to go here, and I can’t imagine it being the same anywhere else. 

That said, I look forward to graduating so I can do more research. My hours spent at the Broad thinking about my UROP are always the quickest hours of my week. I love the rabbit holes my research allows me to explore, and I hope that I find those over and over again as I apply and hopefully get into PhD programs. I look forward to exploring a new city after I graduate, too. I wouldn’t mind staying in Cambridge/Boston. I love it here. But I would welcome a chance to be somewhere new and embrace all the people and unique experiences it has to offer.

I also hope to work on more passion projects post-grad. I feel like I have this idea in my head that once I graduate from MIT, I’ll have so much more time on my hands (we’ll see how that goes). I hope that I can use that time to work on education projects in Nigeria, which is a space I care a lot about. Generally, I want to make service more integrated in my lifestyle. I hope that post-graduation, I can prioritize doing that even more: making it a norm to lift others as I continue to climb.

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New research suggests cerebellum may play important role in autism.

NIMH grant will fund studies on how autism risk gene impacts a crucial, but long-overlooked brain area

• by Douglas Fox
• April 02, 2024

Researchers in the College of Biological Sciences have received a grant to study the role of the cerebellum in autism. “ We need a more holistic understanding of the brain circuits that drive this disorder , ” says Alex Nord, an associate professor of neurobiology, physiology and behavior (NPB), and a researcher at the Center for Neuroscience (CNS). “ The cerebellum is a key component that has been largely overlooked until recently . ”

Nord partnered with Diasynou Fioravante, also an associate professor of NPB and CNS researcher, and received an R21 grant from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Announced in November, it will provide $435,000 of funding over the next two years.

With this grant, they will study how a potent autism risk gene, called chromodomain helicase DNA binding protein 8 ( Chd8 ), alters function in the cerebellum, which plays a crucial role in physical movement, and how this drives autism-like behaviors. Their research ties together two emerging trends in autism research.

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Researchers long believed that autism involved genes that regulate communications between neurons — especially the synapses, where neurotransmitters carry signals from one neuron to another. But starting in the early 2010s, genetic studies revealed that many autism risk genes actually play a very different role: they encode proteins that reside far from the synapses — in the cell ’s nucleus, where the DNA is located, and regulate the activity of hundreds of other genes.

“ This was a huge surprise , ” says Nord. Chd8 , a typical member of this group, regulates how tightly DNA is packaged and coiled with proteins. As such, it may regulate many genes that govern the formation and function of synapses.

At the same time, another major area of study is advancing the field of autism research. Scientists had assumed that autism was driven by changes in the cerebral cortex, which performs all sorts of tasks, such as recognizing words and faces, and “executive function” — controlling working memory, guiding our spotlight of attention, and making choices — such as whether to act on the impulse to withdraw one's hand when an unfamiliar dog approaches.

But in 2012, researchers reported that mice with mild abnormalities in the cerebellum developed behaviors that resembled autism in humans, such as reduced social interaction with other mice. “ The autism field was really rocked by this discovery , ” says Fioravante.

People had previously believed that the cerebellum mainly coordinates body movements such as walking, speaking, and typing. “ When you damage the cerebellum, it causes profound movement problems, and this probably made it difficult to see more subtle changes in behavior , ” says Fioravante.

But she points out that the cerebellum has significant connections with brain structures like the prefrontal cortex, which guides executive function, and limbic system, which regulates sociability, mood and emotions . People with cerebellar injuries often show autism-like changes in their emotions and social interactions.

Then in 2017, Nord and his colleagues reported a discovery that tied together these two intriguing threads : they found that the autism risk gene Chd8 helped guide the development of the cerebellum. Mice with one non-functioning copy of the gene had smaller cerebella.

That discovery “ planted the idea of our project , ” says Fioravante. She and Nord sat in offices next door to one another. And while Nord studied Chd8 , she worked on the cerebellum. In 2021 they applied for, and received, an earlier NIMH grant, to study how Chd8 influences the development of the cerebellum in mice, before and shortly after birth. Fioravante also received a pilot grant from the Behavioral Health Center of Excellence at UC Davis that launched Chd8 cerebellar studies in adult mice.

Working on these earlier grants from 2021 to 2023, they found that Chd8 mutations in mice triggered changes in the cerebellum and in behavior that resemble what is seen in humans with autism. For example, mice with a mutant copy of the gene had impaired social cognition. While regular mice prefer to explore and interact with mice they have not met before, mice with mutant Chd8 had more restricted interests — preferring mice or objects that they already knew.

New targets for treatment

With the new grant, Fioravante and Nord will pick up where they left off. In adult mice with normally developed cerebella, they will use genetic tools to disrupt Chd8 . They will examine how loss of Chd8 alters gene expression and function in neurons of the cerebellum, and how the connections between it and other brain areas change. They will also study whether disruption of Chd8 causes autism-like behavioral changes, such as reduced social interaction with other mice, or reduced interest in novelty. Cesar Canales, an assistant professional researcher in NPB, who has expertise in cerebellar anatomy, will take part in these studies.

These experiments “will help shed light on the totality of what the cerebellum does , ” says Fioravante — getting beyond the traditional narrow view that it mainly coordinates movement. The team also hopes to uncover new strategies for treating autism.

Although autism involves early brain development, the condition usually isn ’t diagnosed until children are years older — when the abnormal brain connections are already established, potentially making treatment difficult.

In these upcoming studies, Nord and Fioravante hope to explore whether the treatment window for autism can be extended. “ If we see changes in behavior or neural circuits when Chd8 is disrupted in the developed cerebellum, then we know there is a treatment target , ” says Nord.

These studies could also shed light on schizophrenia and obsessive-compulsive disorder, which occur more frequently in people with mutations in this gene, says Nord: “ It ’s a molecular handle , an entry point into the pathophysiology of these other complex diseases . ”

Media Resources

• Douglas Fox is a freelance science writer based in the Bay Area.
• Fioravante Lab
• Germline Chd8 haploinsufficiency alters brain development in mouse ( Nature Neuroscience 2017)
• Cognitive-affective functions of the cerebellum ( The Journal of Neuroscience 2023)

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